President & CEO, Beretta Holding, Beretta Holding S.p.A.
Intervista a Pietro Gussalli Beretta, Presidente e AD di Beretta Holding SpA
Claudio Gallone (Class CNBC Italia) intervista Pietro Gussalli Beretta, Presidente e AD di Beretta Holding SpA. Nel corso dell'intervento si parla della storia del gruppo Beretta e di come le società del gruppo abbiano acquisito posizioni rilevanti nel mercato mondiale delle armi sportive, per la caccia e per la difesa personale, oltre che delle più sofisticate ottiche di precisione.
About Pietro Beretta
In a 2016 interview with Class CNBC Italia, Pietro Gussalli Beretta, President and CEO of Beretta Holding, discussed the company's history and global strategy. He stated that Beretta Holding had a consolidated turnover of 650 million euros, with 90% of that revenue generated outside Italy. Beretta noted that military arms accounted for approximately 18% of the holding's total turnover, while for the Fabbrica d'Armi Pietro Beretta subsidiary, business related to military and law enforcement constituted about 40% of its revenue. Beretta described the company's approach to maintaining its market position, saying the family aims to keep Beretta Holding among the top three companies in its sector globally. He said the company invests around 10% of its turnover in research and development to keep products technologically current. Beretta also outlined expansion plans, mentioning a focus on markets including Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Russia, as well as exploration of emerging markets in the former Soviet Union, Far East, and Middle East. He indicated that the company would continue its acquisition strategy to complete its product range and geographic penetration.
Transcript (28 segments)
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Interviewer0:10
Pietro Gussalli Beretta, President and CEO of Beretta Holding, leader in Italy and worldwide in the production of sporting firearms for hunting and personal defense, but today also of the most sophisticated precision optics, with 650 million in consolidated revenue, 3,000 employees, controlling 26 companies in as many different countries. Gussalli Beretta, you represent the 15th generation of a great family of entrepreneurs that has managed to create a holding, a true multinational. How do you become number one?
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Pietro Beretta0:48
I believe you try to become number one by learning from those who came before you. In the case of our family, from those before me, and also with valid collaborators. I owe a great deal to some collaborators who were close to me and close to my brother when we were younger and who helped this adventure that we now carry forward with the help and participation of our father, and with my brother.
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Interviewer1:26
In your archives, you still keep the payment receipts for your first order. It was a supply of arquebus barrels commissioned by the Republic of Venice, dating back to 1526. Can you tell us the story of this great adventure, of this entrepreneurial challenge?
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Pietro Beretta1:45
Thank you. It began with Bartolomeo Beretta, who received this order from the Doge of Venice for arquebus barrels for the Serenissima. From there, our family's story continued through the centuries, through various monarchs, supplying His Majesty King Louis XII of France, then Austria, the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and Prussia, up to the wars of independence with the House of Savoy, and with Garibaldi — we have various documentation of the relationships from that era of the wars of independence — and then up to the last pages of the First and Second World Wars, with also dramatic moments because in the Second World War our company was seized by the Germans and returned to us after the liberation, as family members had participated in the liberation and the change of the situation that had arisen in our country. So I would say we participated in the history of Italy, in the important events of this country.
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Interviewer3:18
And over the centuries you have built side-by-side shotguns, over-and-under shotguns, semi-automatics, hunting rifles, assault rifles, semi-automatic pistols, and revolvers. Today, which are the most appreciated Beretta firearms in the world?
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Pietro Beretta3:32
I think the most famous product in the world remains the Model 92 pistol, with which we won supply contracts for the American armed forces and which continues to be in service with many other armies. So I think it is the most well-known product around the world. I would say that over-and-under hunting shotguns with the Beretta brand follow, with great refinements and great craftsmanship in their creation. But within the group there are products like the Benelli semi-automatics and Steiner optics that I believe can match in reputation and prestige many products made under the Beretta brand.
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Interviewer4:26
Indeed, because Beretta Holding supplies police and armed forces of many major countries, including the United States, France, and Italy. What weight do military firearms have on Beretta Holding's revenue?
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Pietro Beretta4:39
Military firearms account for around 18% of Beretta Holding's revenue. For Fabbrica d'Armi Pietro Beretta, the company in Gardone Val Trompia, our historic headquarters, the entire business related to law enforcement and military — so non-civilian — accounts for about 40%.
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Interviewer5:10
And how much is the Beretta Holding Group's revenue worldwide?
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Pietro Beretta5:14
Beretta Holding's consolidated revenue is 650 million euros, and 90% of that revenue is from outside Italy, so we're talking about roughly 630 million in foreign revenue.
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Interviewer5:27
Which new markets do you intend to explore?
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Pietro Beretta5:30
The markets we are focusing on a great deal right now include Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Russia, where we are already present and believe we can do better. We are also trying to explore new markets linked to emerging countries of the former Soviet Union, the Far East, and the Middle East.
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Interviewer5:59
Beretta Holding combines tradition and craftsmanship with technological innovation. How much and how do you invest in research and development?
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Pietro Beretta6:11
In research and development, we invest globally about 10% of revenue, so these are very significant figures because we seek and believe as a family that keeping products always up to date with the most modern technologies is one of the reasons we have succeeded over the centuries to achieve the reputation we have. This is one of the objectives of our management mission for this group.
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Interviewer6:41
So 10% means about 65 million?
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Pietro Beretta6:46
Roughly so, though it varies by year and investment. It is a large amount for research, but we have a myriad of products because the general public only knows some products bearing the Beretta brand, but I guarantee you we have a myriad of products to try to cover the needs of our clients — from hunters to police officers to military personnel. So the effort is truly very, very great to give these clients the best possible.
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Interviewer7:19
Speaking of this diversification process, you have also become an important player in the optoelectronics sector. Can you explain better what optoelectronics represents for Beretta?
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Pietro Beretta7:33
Beretta Holding has invested heavily in recent years in optoelectronics through acquisitions, because we realized that the firearm is increasingly paired with targeting systems and information systems that the soldier or police officer must receive while performing their duties. So it starts from targeting systems inside binoculars, to telescopes, to night vision goggles, but always with sophisticated targeting system connections, also because nowadays there are firearms that, needing to shoot at distances of up to 2 kilometers, the help of optoelectronics becomes essential.
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Interviewer8:23
But today Beretta is also a brand for clothing and accessories aimed at both hunters and military personnel. Why did you feel the need for this diversification into fashion?
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Pietro Beretta8:40
Yes, it was primarily about wanting to meet our clients' needs. For us it represents about 15 to 16% of global revenue, so it's not particularly significant in terms of size, but it is significant as a message, to continue this commitment to give our clients, especially hunters, the opportunity to have the technical clothing they need for their hobby and sport.
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Interviewer9:18
And some of your hunting rifles are crafted with such artisanal care that they become true works of art. Is there a real collectors' market?
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Pietro Beretta9:29
Yes, absolutely. The collectors' market exists. It is concentrated in the most industrialized countries — so I would say America, Italy, and England are the most significant — and in recent years we have seen a collectors' market developing also in Australia and Russia.
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Interviewer9:55
And how much does a normal hunting rifle cost versus a collectible one?
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Pietro Beretta10:01
For three to four thousand euros you can have a normal hunting rifle. For a collectible rifle, you can spend one hundred to one hundred twenty thousand.
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Interviewer10:12
In recent years, Beretta Holding has acquired important companies such as Saco, Uberti, Tikka, Stoeger, Benelli Armi, and Franchi, and for optics, Steiner and Burris. You have also entered England, Finland, Switzerland, Germany, Russia, Turkey, Canada, the United States, China, Australia, and New Zealand. Do you plan to continue with this expansion strategy?
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Pietro Beretta10:37
I certainly do, because thanks to these acquisitions we have been able to grow and create value for the company. So I really think that in the coming years we will continue with this approach to complete the product range and the geographic penetration and globalization of our group's brands.
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Interviewer11:03
Beretta Holding is now a number one in the world. How do you envision the great challenge for future generations of the Beretta family?
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Pietro Beretta11:14
Well, I think the effort to keep Beretta Holding among the top three companies in the world in our sector will be the great commitment for the next generations. And so tackling this globalization while staying among the top three will be very important — not to be subjected to globalization, but to ride it as well as possible.